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Jasper County’s top state representative and the schools chief are at odds, with both suggesting that bringing in higher authorities to root out suspected problems might be a good idea.

But even as Rep. Bill Herbkersman and Vashti Washington, the superintendent of the Jasper County School District, square off, they agree on one thing: It’s time to get tough to improve the children’s education.

Herbkersman has accused Washington of intimidating teachers and board members and obscuring information about district operations. He has suggested the State Law Enforcement Division or the state Department of Education interview members of the schools community, including parents, to get answers about finances and whether a climate of intimidation exists.

“If everything is fine, if SLED investigates, I’ll be the first to admit it,” said Herbkersman, a Bluffton Republican. “But I am not going to take anybody’s word for it.”

He described a meeting involving board members, parents and teachers: “The administration showed up, and the teachers went home. In my mind, there’s just mass intimidation there.”

Washington, who took the helm of the district in 2010, has fired back.

Herbkersman could learn a lot if he would meet with her and tour the district, but he won’t, she said. In her view, it is Herbkersman who is trying to intimidate her, and she’s considering a civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice against him.

“It’s a personal vendetta,” said Washington, calling the legislator “the lone ranger.” She added: “Let’s take it to the U.S. Justice Department. It’s out of control.”

The superintendent said a taped April 29 meeting with the legislative delegation left her stunned.

“I want the justice department to see that tape,” Washington said.

“And I want the citizens of the state to know there are people who are wasting time attacking the superintendent of Jasper County School District and her administration, when they should be working with us to bring about change.”

Rumors and confusion

The other two House members in the Jasper County delegation have been either entirely in the dark or observing, only.

Bluffton Republican Rep. Weston Newton said he’s had no first-hand experience with allegations against the superintendent.

“I heard a rumor that a substantial number of teachers had left, but then it was explained that was normal attrition and (due to) consolidation of the schools,” said the first-term lawmaker.

He cited another example involving the S.C. Freedom of Information Act.

Someone had given him a copy of a FOIA request and said the school district had never answered it. But Newton came to learn the district had no record of receiving it, and confusion about when and even if the author had ever submitted the letter to the district was never cleared up.

He was also unaware of specific cases to indicate a hostile atmosphere.

“In the absence of having first-hand discussions, or even second-hand, rather than third, fourth, or fifth-hand, I’m really not in a position (to say),” Newton said.

Rep. Bill Bowers, D-Hampton, is even further removed from the controversy.

“The school board functions independently of the delegation to handle school matters,” he said, noting his district was recently redrawn to include Jasper County.

As for constituent concerns, Bowers said: “I’ve not had anyone in particular contact me.”

In contrast, Herbersman said nearly a dozen people associated with the district have brought their complaints to him but didn’t want their names revealed, for fear of retribution.

Tom Johnson, an attorney who represented parents who sought an injunction last year against school consolidation, has been in the center of the controversy. He said some believe Washington controls the board, not the other way around, and that the administration is bloated at the expense of the classrooms.

Jasper County’s average administrator salary is down 4.2 percent from the previous year. It was $75,880 in 2012, slightly less than the statewide median of $77,744, according to a profile with the state education department. For the last three years, the district’s performance has been rated “at-risk.”

“I am told that Ms. Washington is a very, very talented educator. And I don’t have any reason to doubt that,” said Johnson. “But it does sometimes seem that she is disdainful sometimes of the democratic process ... . I think she’s absolutely indifferent to the idea of a consensus.”

When Washington joined the district, some residents balked at the hires she had made, seeking records about the process and questioning credit card spending and compensation. District spokeswoman Shellie Murdaugh said the administration has posted responses to FOIA requests on its website in an effort to operate transparently.

But sometimes inefficiency trumps all.

Washington noted the district has averaged about one superintendent per year. When a reporter asked for the names of the last five superintendents and the approximate dates of their tenure, however, Murdaugh said it would take nearly a week to provide the information, since a staff person with those records was out.

‘Not a bigoted bone’

Washington has her suspicions about what’s fueling objections to her leadership.

“It’s because I’m an African-American female, as well as just female,” said the superintendent, adding that the presence of other blacks in Herbkersman’s camp doesn’t protect him from her charge.

“If I were a male or a white person, I wouldn’t have these problems,” she added. “There are some African-Americans who are unhappy with the choices we’ve had to make, as well, but we are here to do what’s right for these children.”

As for why Herbkersman hasn’t met with Washington?

“I’ve never had a one-on-one. I think there needs to be transparency. I think the public should be invited,” said the lawmaker, who serves as the Jasper County delegation chairman.

“I don’t need to clear the air. If there’s any clearing the air, she needs to clear the air with the parents.”

The lawmaker, whose House district was redrawn to include parts of Jasper County in 2012 election, said the first person to ask him to look into problems with the district was Jasper County Councilwoman Barbara Clark, who is black.

“For (Washington) to even say it’s a racial thing is ludicrous. It’s trying to divert from the fact of what could be going on,” said Herbkersman. “The more eyes looking at things the better.”

Herbkersman said he’d welcome any such involvement.

“There is not a bigoted bone in my body,” he said.

Clark, a former school board member, defended Herbkersman and agreed with his criticism.

She said Washington has “different rules for different people.” The council member accused the superintendent of soft-pedaling her handling of district paraprofessional Sam Gregory, who was arrested for allegedly harming a student. Clark said Gregory, a former county councilman, is an ally of Washington.

“If you come up with something and a certain group is not with it, then it becomes a race issue,” said Clark. “Nothing is right or wrong. It’s either white or black, and I’m sick and tired of it.

Richie Reed, a fixture in Jasper County’s education circles and former district teacher, acknowledged the unrest.

“How widespread? I don’t know,” she said. “And what the real issue is? Let’s just come to grips with, ‘What is the real issue?’”

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For Ms Washington to say, " It's because I am an African- American female, as well as just female." Only shows that she is calling her State Representative a racist. Just for that reason she should resign as proving by her statement she herself is a racist rather then answer the charge.